Uphold the Law: Say "No" to "Sanctuary" Cities

It’s time to end so-called "sanctuary" cities. It's time to uphold the law:

Brutal murder shows no one is safe from dangerous "sanctuary" cities polices:

You cannot, as a local government, just decide to ignore the law -- and yet this is what is happening in Hamilton and Toronto, where both cities have declared themselves to be "sanctuary" cities.

This means that they don’t care whether you are in Canada legally or illegally; they will give you the same services and equal treatment.

I understand wanting to treat all people with dignity. We are all God’s creatures and we are all created equal.

However, "sanctuary" city policies encourage and reward people for breaking the law. They are also terribly unfair to the immigrants who actually do follow the law in order to properly take refuge in Canada and to eventually, through the proper processes, immigrate here.

The "sanctuary cities" movement comes to us from the United States, where they have been dealing with the increasing challenge of so many illegal immigrants.

The movement began with calls to put the children of illegals in local schools. Then it became a call to extend welfare payments and now it has gone so far that, in San Francisco, local law enforcement will not co-operate with federal agencies to deport someone.

The result? Last week this woman, Kathryn Steinle, known to her family as Kate, was killed while strolling on Pier 14, a sight-seeing pier, in San Francisco. She was out with her family when she was shot and killed by Juan Francisco Lopez Sanchez, a man who had been deported five times, a man with several felony convictions, a man that immigration officials wanted to deport again.

They told this San Francisco sheriff Ross Mirkarimi, who ignored what is called a detainer request. Why? Because of San Francisco’s sanctuary city policy. According to the Sheriff, if federal officials want him to co-operate in deporting dangerous criminals, then they need to get a court order.

Have we gone that far in Canada yet?

I don’t think so, but I can’t say for sure.

I asked for comment from police in Hamilton and Toronto. They didn’t have much to say, but what they did send to me in emailed statements does not make me feel good.

Catherine Martin of the Hamilton Police Service sent me this statement:

"The Hamilton Police Service works within the confines of the Criminal Code as well as our Charter and will continue to serve all members of our community regardless of their documented status."

Regardless of their documented status? Really, so you don’t care if people are breaking the law, that is not of your concern. So now you just enforce laws you like, is that it?

Meaghan Gray of Toronto’s police service said this:

"The policy of the Toronto Police Service is that victims and witnesses will not be asked their immigration status unless there is a bona fide reason to do so."

During an investigation, if the police become aware that a person is in Canada illegally, they must notify the CBSA. Toronto’s policy sounds a lot like Bill Clinton’s "don’t ask, don’t tell policy" from the 1990s.

The people that support sanctuary cities will tell you that they are protecting people who need help, refugees fleeing persecution.

I’m not buying it.

Canada has a very generous refugee system and a very generous immigration system. We welcomed more than 250,000 immigrants last year and about 24,000 refugees, some of them brought here from United Nations camps by the federal government, some brought here by private groups like churches, and then the largest number found their way to our shores.

Those are the real refugees. If someone needs help, Canada is there.

But these people being aided and abetted by sanctuary city policies are simply economic migrants. They wanted to come to Canada for a better life but they chose to do so illegally.

And we are rewarding them.

We need to stop this. We need to stop it now.

We need to call on local and federal governments to ensure that the law is applied evenly and equally across the land, that cities cannot decide to simply instruct their police forces to stop enforcing certain laws.

Mark my words, if we don’t do this now, the "sanctuary" city movement will grow. It will spread to Vancouver, Edmonton, and Halifax.

It will end up like what we see in San Francisco where dangerous people are set free because of the political ideology of the city council. Someone will die.

I need your help. First I want you to SIGN OUR PETITION on this. Let your voice be heard.

Secondly, I want you to SHARE this with your family and friends. They may not know about this because this story is not getting the attention it deserves here. So email this story, this video to them. Share this on your Facebook page and other social media sites, post it so your friends there will see it.

One voice in the wilderness won’t accomplish much. Many voices together will.

Sign the petition!

We the undersigned Canadians demand that Mayor of Toronto John Tory and Mayor of Hamilton Fred Eisenberger cooperate with the federal government and local law enforcement to ensure the equal application of Canadian law and to put an end to so-called "sanctuary" cities for illegal immigrants. Uphold the law!